veg burger

Vegetarian BBQ

A BBQ get together should never exclude guests who are vegetarian. Honestly there is only so much corn and salad anybody can eat. These recipes if prepared correctly will have even your meat loving guests coming back to these for seconds, particularly this spin on a fast food staple meat based burger.

5-Spice Carrot Dogs with Kimchi
This recipe involves carrots, and if you were to use liquid smoke and few other spices I believe even the kids will not miss hotdogs. Marinating and getting some light grill marks really makes these a homerun!
6 medium sized carrots (peeled)
1 C pineapple juice
½ C orange juice (fresh squeezed)
¼ C soy sauce (the light sodium variety if you can find it)
1 tsp vinegar
1 tsp smoked paprika
1 Tbsp 5-Spice
½ Tbsp garlic (minced)
½ Tbsp onion (minced)
½ Tbsp ginger (minced)
1 Tbsp honey
½ tsp ground coriander
¼ tsp black pepper (fine grind)

Boil carrot s until a toothpick can pass through the flesh with mild resistance.
Mix all remaining ingredients in a container that you can seal and fits all the carrots (Ziploc bag works.)
Remove carrots from the boiling water and place into the marinade for 24 hours
Reserve marinade for brushing the carrot dogs as you grill them.
BBQ until deep colour forms (caramelization) along with some grill marks (just be careful the sugars in the marinade will burn if you are not paying attention.

Bail-Out Kimchi
Kimchi is a great way to add some texture and zip to these dogs. Generally it takes weeks to make an authentic kimchi, but this recipe can be done in a fraction of the time.
½ head of cabbage (thinly chopped or use a mandolin)
1 C hot water
¼ C Kosher salt
? C hot pepper flakes,
1 Tbsp sugar,
¼ C fish sauce,
¼ C garlic (minced)
3-4 stalks of green onion (coarsely chopped green parts…not the whites)
¼ C carrots (julienned)
Dissolve Kosher salt into boiling water.
Place chopped cabbage into the water and salt. Leave it alone for at least 10 minute.
Mix remaining ingredients in a separate bowl to create a paste.
Drain and rinse cabbage under cold water and shake dry.
Mix the paste into the cabbage and let rest in the fridge for at least 30 minutes. Use an air tight container or Ziploc bag. The longer you leave it, the more it will ferment and become more authentic as the flavours intensify.
Enjoy!

Veg Mack
Two all-beef patties…blah, blah, blah. You know the song, and you know this staple burger of the fast food Universe. The only thing that stops this from becoming a Vegan recipe and not just a vegetarian recipe is the fact the buns I used have some egg in them. The sauce is what makes this BBQ veggie burger. Trust me, this is something that you need to try at least once in your life. You will NOT miss the meat. Just change the name to avoid a copyright issue if some “clown” comes calling with lawyers in tow.
Mack Sauce
2 Tbsp Veganaise
1 Tbsp ketchup
½ tsp garlic (minced)
1 tsp onion (minced)
½ tsp white vinegar
2 slices of vegetarian cheese slices (yup it is made from tofu)
4-6 dill pickles (sliced)
2 leaves of iceberg lettuce (washed and thinly sliced)

Black Bean and Rice Patties
2 cans of refried black beans (rinsed and drained)
1 C brown rice (cooked)
½ C quinoa (cooked)
1 small onion (minced)
1 clove garlic (minced)
1 C panko bread crumbs
1 – 3 adobo or chipotle chilies in sauce (the more you add the more heat you get)
EVO to brush burger for the BBQ

You may need to add more or less breadcrumbs to fins your perfect texture on these patties.
Mix everything together (except EVO) and shape into patties.
Let patties rest in fridge for 2-8 hours
Brush the patties with EVO and lightly salt and pepper them before they hit the grill.
Grill for about 5 minutes each side (yup, you can get the classic grill marks on these patties) being careful not to break the patty when you turn it (hence why you need to experiment with the texture that best suits you.)
Assemble your burger and remember to toast your buns for texture.
Bun, patty, cheese, sauce, pickles, onion, lettuce bun, patty, cheese, sauce, pickles, onion, lettuce bun
Yet again I will swear to you, that you will not miss the meat with this monster burger…I know I’m luv’in it!
Enjoy!

Filed under: #BBQ, #Chris Mask, #veggieburger